My experience at Anime Boston 2016
May 5, 2016
I’m sitting up against a wall and sipping a coconut bubble tea, uncomfortably close to at least five other people, only three of which I came here with. We have been sitting here for three hours, and the wait isn’t over yet. We’re in line for the Masquerade event at Anime Boston, where people...
To build a computer
May 5, 2016
Until now, I’ve only ever owned a Mac, which meant I never had to learn much about hardware because even if I did, I wouldn’t have been able to do anything about it. I know a fair amount about software, but I really only have one important skill: Googling. So if I can build my own computer, rest...
X marks the spot
April 14, 2016
Born from the lyrics of the 1981 song by hardcore punk band Minor Threat, “Straight Edge,” the straight edge movement arose in unison with the punk scene as a drug and alcohol-free counterculture. The premise of the straight edge lifestyle is simple and inherently conservative: no consumption...
Pissed off in Portland
April 14, 2016
I held my legs tightly together as I speed-walked down Fore Street in Portland, Maine. My foremost concern in this foreign city was, “Where am I gonna pee?” Portland has no public bathrooms, something I didn’t realize before I started driving there four hours previously. If I had known this, I...
Mud season madness
April 14, 2016
Many northern New Englanders refer to it as the fifth season. No, it’s not embedded somewhere in the bipolar winter that we have had, but it does follow in Old Man Winter’s footsteps, waiting patiently for its time to shine. Mud season is upon us in Vermont. Many 4x4 enthusiasts might look forward...
What goes around, comes around
April 14, 2016
Tucked into the right-hand corner when you first walk into the Burlington Town Center is a sight unlike anything else in the area: a collection of booth-style tables arranged for easy access to the small plates of sushi that pass by on an ever-moving conveyor belt in the center. A Cuisine is an Asian...
The pot pioneer
April 14, 2016
Hidden among the suburbs in the outskirts of Denver, Colorado stands a former Raytheon missile construction facility, complete with missile silos and underground passageways. Instead of weapons of mass destruction, the larger than 10,000 square foot structure is now home to thousands of marijuana plants...
For the love of flannel
March 25, 2016
What do big lumberjacks, mountain men, hipsters, and Johnson State College students all have in common? Their love of flannel, of course. Just take a walk across the quad, or duck into a few classrooms, and you will find plenty of students wearing flannel shirts made of thick wool or cotton fabric...
Go figure: Badintegers try to work it out
March 25, 2016
The Badintegers, Johnson’s new math club, may have only started last semester, but they are already preparing research for an upcoming math conference, designing tools for computer software, and, most importantly, having a good time. The revival of Johnson’s math club was started by current Club...
Vermont’s best veggie option
March 25, 2016
Nestled among the buildings that line the Winooski river in Winooski, sits Pingala Cafe and Eatery in the Old Mill building, just next to Laughing River Yoga. Pingala, known for its all plant-based menu, has the best vegetarian and vegan options in the state of Vermont. The entrance is an old wooden...
Desso’s hits the spot in Jericho
March 25, 2016
It’s a cold and dreary day, just another one in a string that is life in Vermont. I’m sitting in my house in Jericho, searching for sustenance, when I decide that a sandwich would be perfect just about now. Supplies, however, are limited in the house, forcing me to go farther afield in search of...
The superior steak
Tom O’Leary
March 25, 2016
Are you a steak lover? When you go out to eat, do you long for a large, tender, and succulent slab of meat on your plate? Has the lack of a “real” steakhouse in Lamoille County prevented you from satisfying your hunger for this particular cut? If your answer to any of these questions is yes, then...
An intense week in Havana
Rusty Freeman
March 10, 2016
This past Feb. 19-27, 19 Johnson students and faculty spent eight very full days in Havana, Cuba, as part of The Art and Culture of Cuba. “We wanted to immerse our students in the rich and complex culture found in Cuba, a place that, because of American government-imposed travel restrictions,...
Badger Alternative Breaks sends 12 students to the Grand Canyon
March 10, 2016
What are 12 students doing at two a.m.? Certainly you wouldn’t expect them to be embarking on a one week service trip across the U.S. But, on Feb. 20, students got in Johnson State College vans and left for Grand Canyon, Arizona to do trail maintenance in one of America’s most famous national parks. Participants...
Hitchhiker’s guide to Lamoille County
March 10, 2016
Wearing busted combat boots and a faded, patched denim jacket, Jen Davidson stands on the side of the road. Her mess of curls and double-pierced top lip are the signifiers of “Starchild” a.k.a Jen Davidson. Davidson is standing along the shoulder of Route 15 with her thumb out, like many other...
Students from JSC’s Model UN attend conference in Boston
March 10, 2016
Every year, students from over 70 colleges and universities across the globe come together to participate in the Harvard National Model United Nations conference in Boston, Massachusetts. Each school’s Model UN team or club is assigned a country to represent at the HNMUN conference where they participate...
Badger Alternative Break explores access to education in Nicaragua
March 10, 2016
This past break, a group from Johnson State College Badger Alternative Breaks went to Nicaragua as a part of their Education for All program. Centered in Monte Tabor, a small community outside of the capital city of Managua, the trip was focused on building from the ground up. In this particular case,...
BAB makes an impact in Detroit
March 10, 2016
As part of the yearly Badger Alternative Breaks program, 12 members of JSC’s community ventured part-way across the country over February break to help out with community service in Detroit. Although sometimes called Motor City for its time as a shining example of American industrialism, Detroit...
My encounter with Cuban health care
Rusty Freeman
March 10, 2016
Recently, I traveled with a class from Johnson State called “The Art and Culture of Cuba.” The trip provided countless unforgettable memories for everyone on the trip. A saying we kept using on the trip, considering that in Cuba things don’t always go as planned, was, “It’s either a good time...
Life can be a drag
February 18, 2016
The gentle scent of cucumbers and melons wafts before her face, past the green strands of a wig topped by a red bow, past layers of makeup that smell of cool, dry powders. Her heels are aching from dancing for so long in knee-high platform boots, which are a welcome change from the previous black pumps. ...
Downhill Racer
February 18, 2016
A JSC assistant professor in the mathematics department, Greg Petrics started at JSC in 2011. He has really enjoyed his time working towards getting his students to take an interest in math. Petrics moved to Vermont at a young age, quickly finding a passion in alpine skiing and his own personal schooling....
Full heart, empty wallet
February 18, 2016
Pink and red. Babies with heart-shaped weaponry. Candlelit dinners for two. An empty wallet. Crushing despair and loneliness. A single rose. Each year, Valentine’s Day comes in an explosion of love and hearts and then promptly exits the stage, leaving behind the debt of expensive gifts and the...
J-1 Visa students hit the slopes
Ian Major and Rusty Freeman
February 18, 2016
If you visit Jay Peak Resort this winter, you might find Peruvians Diego Calderón Quevedo, and Jorge Andrés Sánchez smiling as they come down the slopes. Peruvian students have been given the opportunity to spend the winter months at ski resorts across Vermont through the J-1 Visa program that...
JSC alum manages Jay Peak’s terrain park
February 18, 2016
With the low light and brisk temperature that come with a typical New England winter morning, you will find yourself picking up on the scent of burning diesel fuel and the distant roars of snow cats preforming final trail preparations for the day at ski resorts across Vermont. 2012 Johnson State College...
The Bird Nerd of Johnson
February 18, 2016
Walking on top of crunchy white snow with trees overhead and chickadees singing, Steve Lamonde catches a glimpse of a gold-tinted bird in the distance. “Oh my God, that is definitely a Gold Crested Kinglet,” says Lamonde. The moment is short but it piques Lamonde’s enthusiasm. His binoculars point...
Finding wisdom in India
February 5, 2016
Two Johnson State College students traveled to the foothills of India to immerse themselves in Buddhism over winter break, leaving the day after Christmas and earning 6 credits in the process. Having no pre-departure group meetings, Marina Turco and Brittany Miracle embarked across the globe with 19 ...
Chris Grabon’s dream
February 4, 2016
Chris Grabon is living his dream. Nearly two years after becoming the new owner of a long-established main street coffee shop in Johnson, he has renamed and redecorated the former Lovin’ Cup, now known as The Dream Café. "The idea of me owning the café was always a dream. It never seemed plausible...
Annie Lu’s cookin’ with gas
Rusty Freeman
February 4, 2016
Closure of Wok-in-House, long the go-to option for Chinese food in Johnson, meant the end of local, affordable Chinese food – at least until recently, when the establishment re-opened with a different name, Johnson’s Kitchen, and under new ownership. Owner Annie Lu is no stranger to the restaura...
You can tune that gear yourself
December 17, 2015
So this year you decided to go ahead and spend that substantial amount of money on a new pair of skis or snowboard. Now wouldn’t you like to be able to keep those new glorified planks in tiptop shape without bringing them to the shop every few weeks? All you need to do this is a handful of materials....
Opening day at Jay: no pow-pow
December 17, 2015
While many Vermonters take to the woods and their hunting camps after their Thanksgiving meals, the rest of us hit the slopes for opening weekend. After approximately six months of waiting, the day is finally here. The past six months have been filled with continuous anticipation buildup, and online...
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